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Thursday August 10 2017

Kenyan opposition demands Odinga be 'declared president'

Supporters of the Kenyan opposition presidential candidate shout and hold sticks during a protest in the Mathare slums of Nairobi on Wednesday, a day after the presidential election. AFP photo

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By Christine Kasemiire

Kenya's opposition coalition the National Super Alliance on Thursday demanded its candidate Raila Odinga be declared president, claiming it had evidence he had won this week's election.

Coalition leader Musalia Mudavadi told journalists "confidential sources" that he declined to name within the IEBC had revealed the "actual results", showing Odinga had won the presidential poll with 8.04 million votes against incumbent Uhuru Kenyatta with 7.75 million.

The public website of the electoral commission (IEBC), which is publishing results as they stream in electronically from polling stations, shows Kenyatta with 8.1 million votes ahead of Odinga with 6.7 million.

According to the website, results are in from 98 percent of polling stations, however the IEBC has urged patience as it cross-checks results with scanned forms.

"Evidently, the accurate and lawful results in the presidential election is the transmission received from the polling stations and contained in the IEBC servers and not the unverified displays," said Mudavadi.

"We demand that the IEBC chairperson announce the presidential election results forthwith and declare Raila Amolo Odinga... as the duly elected president."

Asked why he wouldn't elaborate on the source of the information, Mudavadi cited the case of IEBC computer expert Chris Msando, whose torture and murder in late July raised fears that an attempt was under way to manipulate the IEBC's electronic voting system.

"When we are told at the appropriate time, whether it is within a court of law, then we shall present our evidence," Mudavadi said.